He clearly didn’t know anything about our network or its brand. Lesson: Do your research and watch TV, particularly the network you are pitching to.

The Performer – This guy was an incredible free-style rapper who could literally make up rhymes about whatever was in the room, including the names of my colleague and I. But the idea was definitely not right for us. Lesson:

The Posse – One guy must have invited his entire team with him to his pitch…and failed to mention it to me. It should never take ten people to pitch one idea. It felt like I was being interrogated–and it wasn’t even my pitch! It’s as if they all needed to be there, just in case they had to form Voltron, or some weird version of Voltron.

The Librarian – One guy left an entire multimedia set of reference materials including a thick binder, multiple DVDs, amateur comic books, toy prototypes, and bulky print outs. I don’t want all that extra stuff in my office! Where will my toys sit if your junk takes up my desk space?

Lesson: Keep it simple. Just bring few copies of your pitch document. Maybe a flash drive if needed.

The Namedropper – If you mention a celebrity name in every paragraph, stop–just stop. Please. No one cares. (At least not until your pitch reaches the network’s Public Relations department.) If your concept is half-baked, it makes you seem desperate, even if you actually know that person.

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